Note: This article was originally published on Breitbart HERE.
American Pastors Network President Sam Rohrer shared a prayer requesting God’s assistance to guide Americans back to biblical principles on Wednesday’s edition of SiriusXM’s Breitbart News Tonight. He offered his invocation at the conclusion of an interview with Breitbart Senior Editors-at-Large Rebecca Mansour and Joel Pollak.
Rohrer appealed, “Our dear heavenly Father who is our creator, the establisher of all that we have, the source of all truth, and the basis upon which this nation was founded, our justice system, our system of law, our separation of power, our understanding of right and wrong, and moral truth, all of those things, Lord, come from you. We recognize that you are the source of that.”
Rohrer added, “We also recognize, Lord, that as a nation, we once embraced that ideology. We once embraced the concept of absolute truth and accountability to a God who created us, but Lord, we have walked away from it, and as our own courts have done, and many in government have done, we have taken that which you have said to be true and we have made it false.”
Rohrer continued:
We have taken the sacred life given to every person, and we have made it legal to murder those who are in the womb of our moms, and Lord, we have shed innocent blood. We have redefined what marriage is in this country despite what you have said. We have witnessed, increasingly, the embracing of deception rather than truth. Running from accountability into pragmatism of all types. Lord, we have done these things to our harm.
He went on: “Now we find ourselves as a nation, in trouble, divided — but divided really along the lines, Lord, not of what the purpose of government necessarily is but really on who You are and what Your role is.”
Rohrer pleaded:
I would pray, Lord, on behalf of our nation that was established on Judeo-Christian principles coming right off of the pages of scripture, engraved right on the buildings and walls of Washington, in our very own state capital, we recognize that, Lord — I would ask that you would have mercy upon us and that we would return to You in the recognition that truth exists, that you are the author of it, and that we have walked away from it. We don’t have the answers, Lord, but you do. May we run to the source of truth in these days, and may we with open hands lifted, look to You for the direction to give to us now which we can find in Your word, as our founders and those who went before us knew and followed.
Rohrer concluded, “We need your help, Lord. Our country is at risk. The very foundations of government are being threatened. We need help beyond the political. We need help beyond the pundits and the press. We need divine assistance today. We come to you. We pray in your name. Amen.”
Rohrer described APN’s mission:
American Pastors Network is a ministry that is geared to and focuses on the pulpit and its role in America on proclaiming the truth. It was the pulpit that actually drove the founding of this nation and built into the framework of our law and nation the Judeo-Christian ideology, which was the basis for our law, and it really is the position from which God has established moral truth and moral authority that underpins our law and justice and all that we’ve come to appreciate as freedom in this holy experiment in self-government.
America’s problems will not be solved entirely through politics, warned Rohrer.
“I also believe, that without a doubt, the political office is not the solution to our problems in America,” said Rohrer. “It really comes from the pulpit, and our relationship and understanding that God is the creator of all that we have and He has established a very clear framework for how the family should function, and the individual, and the church, and civil government; the four institutions of authority.
Restoration of America’s freedoms must be rooted in a realignment with Judeo-Christian values, assessed Rohrer.
Rohrer remarked, “We believe that if there is going to be a return and reclaiming of freedoms already lost in this country, and that which is so tremendously under attack as we see all around us but manifested, I think, in a clear way in this Kavanaugh circumstance. If we don’t understand that God has laid out a plan for this nation, we’ve been blessed by it, we have departed from it, and unless we return to Him, we stand in great jeopardy of losing all that we have been given.”
Rohrer linked the battle over Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court to a metaphysical struggle between good and evil.
“Now is the time to be standing up with the truth, not to be running from it,” advised Rohrer. “We called for a day of prayer in regard to the circumstances in Washington because we do believe that this is not just a political struggle that we are watching but that it is literally a spiritual ideological battle between good and evil. it is something we must deal with in a very serious matter, and we think that going to God in prayer is where we must start.”
Rohrer added, “The example of what we are seeing is the result of rejecting those basic principles that have undergirded our system of justice which was built on biblical principles.”Rohrer continued, “Justice, biblically, starts with truth, it is balanced with mercy, and is supplied equitably to all. That’s what the bible says, that’s also what Lady Justice says in her picture when she’s on the Supreme Court building with her eyes covered, the scale is in one hand, truth and mercy there in balance. Our Founders knew that. That’s a biblical principle. When that’s done, then, in fact, you have justice.”
Rohrer added, “But what we have been witnessing with this matter in Washington is nothing at all that’s related to truth, and it is certainly not being done even in keeping with the protocols of our own law, let alone what biblical principles would say about that.”
Rohrer said, “No accusation was ever to be entertained from one person against another only from the mouth of one witness. It had to be established in the mouths of two or three witnesses — who had to be corroborated — in agreement. Two or three witnesses had to say the same thing.”
Rohrer referenced Deuteronomy 19:15 and subsequent verses related to biblical standards for the consideration of witnesses alleging crimes against others.“The purpose of [authorities consulting witnesses] would be to determine the veracity of the claim, of the allegation, to determine where or not the witness was, in fact, legitimate and truthful,” explained Rohrer. Rohrer continued, “It would determine whether there was truth or error, whether or not it was a false witness or a true witness. That did not happen in D.C. It was not about determining the veracity of the witness. It was about how the witness felt and a whole host of other things.”Rohrer discussed the importance of determining the veracity of accusations and the presumption of innocence lying with the accused.
Rohrer stated:
It was so important, in the maintenance of justice, that God told the leaders of Israel that when a false charge was brought up, they were to move swiftly to identify the veracity of the accuser, and the burden of proof was on the accuser, not the accused. And if it was found that that was a false witness, then the law was to be brought against all of the false witnesses, and they were to be given an equivalent penalty to the degree that which they raised the accusation and hoped that the accused would get some kind of punishment.
Rohrer added, “God calls it an evil. False accusations are an evil that need to be purged. If it is not done, if it is not purged — and the false witnesses and those that co-conspire along with it — are actually given the penalty of law that they wish to heap on someone else, if that does not happen, the justice system completely falls apart.”
Rohrer warned, “Our entire justice system is being threatened and many of our own caretakers — our senators and others — seem to care little about that. That’s a frightening thing.”
Photo by Ben White on Unsplash
American Pastors Network: Celebrating Five Years of Equipping Pastors to ‘Stand in the Gap for Truth’
/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by News Room(EDITOR’S NOTE: A multi-part series looking back at the impact of the American Pastors Network over the past five years.)
Serving as a pastor can sometimes be a thankless job, with few in the church who can truly identify with the role and appreciate the “always-on-call” nature of the position.
But for five years, the American Pastors Network (APN) has helped equip pastors with resources, insight, encouragement and culture-changing information that help them educate their congregations to “stand in the gap for truth” alongside other members of church leadership.
Throughout November, APN will reflect on its five-year anniversary, on God’s provision and all the blessings bestowed upon the ministry since its inception in 2013. The Pennsylvania Pastors Network began in 2005 in the first capital city of our nation, Philadelphia. From this one state chapter, APN was birthed. Today, APN celebrates that the national network of pastors has started eight state chapters over the years with many in the wings to launch additional state chapters. Currently, APN state chapters exist in Arkansas, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia—with three others preparing to launch.
As it looks back on five years of ministry, APN asked three state chapter presidents this question: “As a busy pastor, what was it about APN and its mission that persuaded you and your state leadership team to assume the leadership of your state pastors network?”
Tim Berlin, president of the Michigan Pastors Network, says the answer is twofold.
“I love the emphasis APN puts on the pulpit ministry,” he said. “I completely agree with the fact that we (must) motivate those to whom we serve and those to whom we lead in the church to have a biblical worldview and to approach the issues of the day from the Bible. The Bible teaches us in 2 Peter that (God’s Word) has all the answers for godliness in this world and so that we can live godly. We have all the answers to approach every issue with a biblical worldview and a biblical perspective, and that way, God can be glorified through any and all circumstances and any and all issues of the day. We ought to be teaching and preaching from the Word of God to help our people respond properly to the things that are going on in the world around them.
“I have (also) really appreciated APN’s emphasis on sharing the Gospel with political leaders,” Berlin added. “We are servants of God as called by God to minister in the local church, but they are ministers of God called and appointed by God to serve in public office, and yet many of these have a soul that will spend eternity without Christ if we do not share the Gospel. So we have adopted the premise that we’re going to teach them the Gospel before we try to discuss policy or positions on different issues. We want to build a relationship that allows us to share the Gospel.”
Dale Walker, president of the Tennessee Pastors Network, echoed his fellow leader’s sentiments.
“I’m bi-vocational as many pastors are,” Walker said. “We had a loose group of pastors prior to becoming associated with the American Pastors Network, but the strong biblical worldview to stand in the gap was exactly what attracted us to APN—that we could come together under the umbrella of American Pastors Network and make a major difference across our state and unite Bible-believing preachers to stand in the gap for our country and our nation and our state and our counties and our communities.”
Keith Carnahan, president of the Missouri Pastors Network, said the need is great for a national network of pastors because there are always forces vying for pastors’ time and energy.
“We need to energize the pastors in their pulpits,” he said. “We need to get them to engage in the culture. I’m 65 years old, so I see that the younger generation of preachers hasn’t had the opportunity to understand some of these issues—the battles we’ve been fighting.”
APN President Sam Rohrer said that APN leaders were called and moved to form a ministry that would serve as a nationwide network of biblically faithful pastors and their church members whose objective would be to build a permanent infrastructure of like-minded Christians who would: affirm the authority of Scripture; take seriously Jesus’ command to be the “salt and light” to the culture; encourage informed Christian thinking about contemporary social issues; examine public policy issues without politicizing their pulpits; and engage their congregations in taking part in the political process on a non-partisan basis.
“We’ve stayed true to that mission, and God’s blessings have been miraculous,” Rohrer said. “So much has been done with so little. There have been no single deep pockets, no large benefactor and certainly no government funding. Yet God has done great things in five years.”
Specifically, APN has made tremendous strides in media, through both radio and television. APN has three national radio programs—“Stand in the Gap Today,” “Stand in the Gap Minute” and “Stand in the Gap Weekend”—airing on hundreds of stations and reaching millions each week. The programs consider the most important global concerns from a biblical and constitutional perspective. Rohrer also hosts a weekly television program, which considers transcending cultural issues from a biblical worldview perspective. “Stand in the Gap TV” airs on several networks, including WBPH in Philadelphia, VCY-TV in Milwaukee and Upliftv nationally.
Where Does Unity Begin?
/0 Comments/in Blog /by News Roomby Dr. Gary Dull, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Pastors Network
This article was originally published by the Christian Post HERE.
As we have watched the news over the past few days, we have learned that someone is attempting to put terror in the hearts of Americans by the sending of packages containing pipe bombs to various locations. This is a horrible thing to do but it shows the depravity of mankind. No one who truly loves America and respects others would do such a thing. However, someone who dislikes America is willing not only to send out pipe bombs that may or may not detonate, but will stoop to even lower acts to attempt to divide our nation.
Yes, the issue is, we are a divided nation. And that division has led unreasonable people to perform unreasonable acts to create a further division in the land that many of us truly love.
The United States of America is a Democratic Republic, and within that structure we have the freedom to disagree with others, including the government itself. But disagreement that has constructive results should be done in a peaceful way, not in a way that either brings fear or harm upon others.
Yes, the problem in America is disunity and the solution for America is unity. But the big question is, “Where does unity begin?”
Let us remember that we are the United States of America. Among other things, that indicates that our nation is made up of 50 separate governmental entities, called states, that together form one nation. And within each state there are different ethnicities, religions, philosophies and traditions. Indeed, out of many we are one.
Even in the early days of our country, there were many differences of opinion. Some of those differences were solved in improper ways. But most of them were solved by reasonable thinking people who sat down and worked out those differences, putting selfish ideas aside for the sake of a united republic. And it worked.
The act of sending suspicious packages is not the problem in America. It is the symptom of the problem, which is disunity stemming from a selfish heart that results in acts of terror. The Bible says in Jeremiah 17:9: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Yes, a wicked heart results in wicked thoughts that will lead to wicked actions.
To build unity in America, each of us should consider submitting our hearts to biblical principles that are centered around the teachings of Jesus Christ, which will develop true peace and unity. Looking back in our history, we could site many illustrations to show that is how unity came into fruition in developing the United States of America.
Our nation may be more divided now than it has been in any recent time. And it is very easy for each of us to point our fingers at others saying “they” are the cause for the disunity. But that will only create further disunity. So to build a constructive unity in America, I suggest the following components for each of us to consider:
Respect others in their opinions. No two people will agree all the time.
Refrain from speech that has the potential to divide. Endeavor to speak to encourage others and direct them down the right moral path if they have gotten off course.
Always speak the truth. Deception and lies will certainly divide and create disunity.
Pray for one another. True prayer for others will always take away the desire to harm those with whom we disagree.
Avoid the “me first” syndrome and regard others as fellow human beings created by God.
Refuse to participate in any action that may potentially harm others.
Be courageous and do the right thing all the time in relation to others.
Be willing to respectfully discuss with others when differences occur so as to come to a peaceful resolution.
These are just a few thoughts to take into consideration in order to bring unity to our nation. But if each of us would translate these thoughts into actions we would be well on our way to a true United States of America that will result in a unity, which will in turn strengthen the nation.
And that is certainly needed.
Photo by Joanna Kosinska on Unsplash
Millennials and America’s Future: An Interview with Sam Rohrer
/0 Comments/in Blog /by News RoomOn October 23rd, American Pastors Network President, Sam Rohrer, was interviewed by Chuck Crismier with Save America Ministries. The topic was “Millennials and the Future of America”.
To listen to the interview, please click HERE.
Photo by Naassom Azevedo on Unsplash
American Pastors Network Calling for a National Day of Prayer for the Elections on October 30
/0 Comments/in Blog, Release /by News RoomChristians around the nation know the importance of the midterm elections on Nov. 6. Many also realize the country was granted a window of reprieve—and that window may be closing.
American Pastors Network leaders, President Sam Rohrer and Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Pastors Network, Dr. Gary Dull, have called for a “National Day of Prayer for the Elections” on Oct. 30. They along with co-host Dave Kistler made the call last week on APN’s popular daily radio program, “Stand in the Gap Today,” which airs on 425 stations.
“After this announcement was made on the radio program,” Dull said, “many people called in to voice their support and say they would also be on their knees October 30 for the outcome of these elections.Personally, I am burdened about this, particularly since we’ve heard of evangelical pastors who are traveling to 30 cities in 10 states to tell Christians to vote Democrat,” Dull said. “This is a very serious matter for our nation. I truly am praying God will use the American Pastors Network and ‘Stand in the Gap Today’ to make an impact.
“Too many Christians could be deceived into voting the wrong way biblically,” Dull added. “This is a Jude situation developing right in front of us—false teachers entering into our midst. As believers in Christ, we are compelled in the Scripture to pray for our nation, our government and those who are in authority according to 1 Timothy 2:1-7. Prayer truly enables us to see the work of God, and the more earnestly and specifically we pray, the more we will see God at work. The upcoming midterm elections may truly be the most serious midterms in America’s history, which is why all concerned believers across America should unite in serious prayer that God will put into office those who will stand for biblical principles in all of their governance.”
At stake specifically, say the pastors network leaders, are many biblical principles, including but not limited to the following, which may also guide Christians’ prayers:
Listen to the “Stand in the Gap Today” program segment when the prayer day was discussed here.
Dull pastors Faith Baptist Church of Altoona, Pennsylvania, which will host a special prayer service at 7 p.m. Oct. 30. Dull is also encouraging other pastors to hold similar services in their churches, reserving the 7 o’clock hour to do so, with the hope that God will convict believers on the significance of voting.
“There is certainly a necessity to emphasize prayer for the election, while at the same time, emphasizing the need for spiritual awakening for the Church at large,” Rohrer said. “Exactly one week before Election Day will help focus and calibrate people’s thinking and energy—and we pray they will put that energy into going to the Lord on behalf of our country.”
Photo by Samuel Martins on Unsplash
American Pastors Network Debuts New ‘Stand in the Gap’ Television Program Today on Upliftv
/2 Comments/in Release /by News RoomBeginning today, “Stand in the Gap” TV, which analyzes transcending cultural issues from a biblical worldview perspective and which most deem difficult to navigate, will air on Upliftv through DirecTV Channel 379, Frontier Communications, Buckeye Broadband, Consolidated Communications and Hotwire Communications. Learn more about Upliftv here.
“Our prayerful intent is that this program will bring clarity to cultural confusion and make sense of the nonsense around us,” said APN President and “Stand in the Gap” host Sam Rohrer. “‘Stand in the Gap’ TV focuses on root problems and applies biblical principles so God’s people can know the truth. God’s Word holds the answer to every issue. We believe that, and He does mean what He says. Each week, we’ll take the newspaper in one hand and the Bible in the other, and present solutions and answers to the most controversial and complex issues of the day.”
“Stand in the Gap” TV will air at 3:30 p.m. Tuesdays and noon Thursdays on Upliftv, reaching a potential of 24 million households nationally.
In April, “Stand in the Gap” debuted Sunday afternoons on WBPH-TV60, a television station in the Philadelphia market that reaches a potential of 7 million viewers in the greater Philadelphia region by cable, DirecTV, Dish Network, off air antenna and online. The program airs on WBPH at 3 p.m. Sundays and is rebroadcast at 8 p.m. Tuesdays and 7:30 p.m. Thursdays.
“Stand in the Gap” TV also airs on WVCY-America TV 30 in the Milwaukee market. The show airs several times throughout the week in southeast Wisconsin on DirecTV Channel 30/950; Dish Channel 30/7707, cable, antenna and at vcyamerica.org/tv30.
Rohrer is a former businessman, 18-year Pennsylvania state legislator and candidate for governor. He is a regular guest on national radio and TV, speaking on a wide range of public policy issues including the biblical role of government, the dangers of Islam, the organized homosexual lobby and the defense of marriage.
Co-hosting with Rohrer is Isaac Crockett, pastor of Hamburg Bible Church. He has had the opportunity to travel throughout the U.S., preaching and teaching in hundreds of churches and Christian schools, as well as five foreign countries. Crockett has also worked as a social worker and substitute teacher.
Learn more about “Stand in the Gap” TV here or view a promo for the show here.
Let Us Not Allow Any Old ‘Truth’ to Reject the Unwavering Facts of the Bible
/0 Comments/in Blog /by News RoomThis article was originally published on Lifezette HERE.
Justice is turned back, and righteousness stands afar off; For truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter. So truth fails, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. — Isaiah 59:14-20 (NKJV)
Everywhere, the media put forth what they consider to be the truth.
The president calls it fake news. The name “fake news” implies that what is being presented is fake or false.
Dictionary.com lists these words and others as synonyms to describe what is fake:
It should be clear to even the most uninformed person that the conflict going on in our society is between these two concepts — the true and the false.
What’s happening has been brought about entirely by a change in the concept of truth. Your “truth” is not my “truth,” say the progressives who knowingly reject the facts and rock-solid truth based on biblical principles.
In the United States, the change in the conceptual framework happened between 1913 and 1940. Before this time, people talking to each other could be relatively sure they were sharing presuppositional beliefs. The first one is that there are absolutes in the areas of being, knowledge, and morals.
Those who shared reasoning based on presuppositions reasoned on the classical basis of antithesis. If something was right, it’s opposite was false. While Christians believed the Bible to be the proper and God-given source of truth, those who weren’t believers went along even if they did not have a philosophical reason.
The shift that has happened in the years past 1913 has been cataclysmic. The life of the unborn is devalued and murder is allowed because people do not see the taking of life as wrong.
Decapitation and indiscriminate rape, torture and murder are committed by those who believe their long-dead prophet demands it for all “infidels.”
If preachers in their churches said something was true, then its opposite was false. God exists and Christianity’s foundation is God’s existence. Without it, Christianity is meaningless. Without Christianity and Judaism, the words of antithesis in our Constitution are devoid of meaning or changeable at the whim of nine people in robes in Washington, D.C.
Without truth derived from antithesis, philosophy, art, music, general culture and theology slide into despair according to Schaeffer.
If truth is malleable and changeable, then the laws we pass count for nothing because they are not an objective, third-party, standard.
So let’s have a little fun. Let’s see if we can name how our government officials have broken the Ten Commandments. With Congress, the executive branch and the Supreme Court as your focus, see how many of the Ten Commandments they’ve broken that you can think of right now.
So here are the Ten Commandments. Do the exercise for yourself.
1.) Thou shall have no other gods before me.
2.) Thou shall not make any graven image and not bow down to them, nor serve them,
3.) Thou shall not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain.
4.) Keep the Sabbath day to sanctify it, as the LORD thy God hath commended thee.
6.) Thou shalt not kill.
7.) Neither shall thou commit adultery.
8.) Neither shall thou steal.
9.) Neither shall thou bear false witness against thy neighbor.
10.) Neither shall thou desire thy neighbor’s wife; neither shall thou covet thy neighbor’s house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or anything that is thy neighbor’s.
Now the really important question — using yourself as a focus, go down the list of Ten Commandments again and see how you do.
Sam Rohrer Shares Prayer for God to Guide America on Breitbart News Tonight
/0 Comments/in Blog /by News RoomNote: This article was originally published on Breitbart HERE.
American Pastors Network President Sam Rohrer shared a prayer requesting God’s assistance to guide Americans back to biblical principles on Wednesday’s edition of SiriusXM’s Breitbart News Tonight. He offered his invocation at the conclusion of an interview with Breitbart Senior Editors-at-Large Rebecca Mansour and Joel Pollak.
Rohrer appealed, “Our dear heavenly Father who is our creator, the establisher of all that we have, the source of all truth, and the basis upon which this nation was founded, our justice system, our system of law, our separation of power, our understanding of right and wrong, and moral truth, all of those things, Lord, come from you. We recognize that you are the source of that.”
Rohrer added, “We also recognize, Lord, that as a nation, we once embraced that ideology. We once embraced the concept of absolute truth and accountability to a God who created us, but Lord, we have walked away from it, and as our own courts have done, and many in government have done, we have taken that which you have said to be true and we have made it false.”
Rohrer continued:
We have taken the sacred life given to every person, and we have made it legal to murder those who are in the womb of our moms, and Lord, we have shed innocent blood. We have redefined what marriage is in this country despite what you have said. We have witnessed, increasingly, the embracing of deception rather than truth. Running from accountability into pragmatism of all types. Lord, we have done these things to our harm.
He went on: “Now we find ourselves as a nation, in trouble, divided — but divided really along the lines, Lord, not of what the purpose of government necessarily is but really on who You are and what Your role is.”
Rohrer pleaded:
I would pray, Lord, on behalf of our nation that was established on Judeo-Christian principles coming right off of the pages of scripture, engraved right on the buildings and walls of Washington, in our very own state capital, we recognize that, Lord — I would ask that you would have mercy upon us and that we would return to You in the recognition that truth exists, that you are the author of it, and that we have walked away from it. We don’t have the answers, Lord, but you do. May we run to the source of truth in these days, and may we with open hands lifted, look to You for the direction to give to us now which we can find in Your word, as our founders and those who went before us knew and followed.
Rohrer concluded, “We need your help, Lord. Our country is at risk. The very foundations of government are being threatened. We need help beyond the political. We need help beyond the pundits and the press. We need divine assistance today. We come to you. We pray in your name. Amen.”
Rohrer described APN’s mission:
American Pastors Network is a ministry that is geared to and focuses on the pulpit and its role in America on proclaiming the truth. It was the pulpit that actually drove the founding of this nation and built into the framework of our law and nation the Judeo-Christian ideology, which was the basis for our law, and it really is the position from which God has established moral truth and moral authority that underpins our law and justice and all that we’ve come to appreciate as freedom in this holy experiment in self-government.
America’s problems will not be solved entirely through politics, warned Rohrer.
“I also believe, that without a doubt, the political office is not the solution to our problems in America,” said Rohrer. “It really comes from the pulpit, and our relationship and understanding that God is the creator of all that we have and He has established a very clear framework for how the family should function, and the individual, and the church, and civil government; the four institutions of authority.
Restoration of America’s freedoms must be rooted in a realignment with Judeo-Christian values, assessed Rohrer.
Rohrer remarked, “We believe that if there is going to be a return and reclaiming of freedoms already lost in this country, and that which is so tremendously under attack as we see all around us but manifested, I think, in a clear way in this Kavanaugh circumstance. If we don’t understand that God has laid out a plan for this nation, we’ve been blessed by it, we have departed from it, and unless we return to Him, we stand in great jeopardy of losing all that we have been given.”
Rohrer linked the battle over Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court to a metaphysical struggle between good and evil.
“Now is the time to be standing up with the truth, not to be running from it,” advised Rohrer. “We called for a day of prayer in regard to the circumstances in Washington because we do believe that this is not just a political struggle that we are watching but that it is literally a spiritual ideological battle between good and evil. it is something we must deal with in a very serious matter, and we think that going to God in prayer is where we must start.”
Rohrer added, “The example of what we are seeing is the result of rejecting those basic principles that have undergirded our system of justice which was built on biblical principles.”Rohrer continued, “Justice, biblically, starts with truth, it is balanced with mercy, and is supplied equitably to all. That’s what the bible says, that’s also what Lady Justice says in her picture when she’s on the Supreme Court building with her eyes covered, the scale is in one hand, truth and mercy there in balance. Our Founders knew that. That’s a biblical principle. When that’s done, then, in fact, you have justice.”
Rohrer added, “But what we have been witnessing with this matter in Washington is nothing at all that’s related to truth, and it is certainly not being done even in keeping with the protocols of our own law, let alone what biblical principles would say about that.”
Rohrer said, “No accusation was ever to be entertained from one person against another only from the mouth of one witness. It had to be established in the mouths of two or three witnesses — who had to be corroborated — in agreement. Two or three witnesses had to say the same thing.”
Rohrer referenced Deuteronomy 19:15 and subsequent verses related to biblical standards for the consideration of witnesses alleging crimes against others.“The purpose of [authorities consulting witnesses] would be to determine the veracity of the claim, of the allegation, to determine where or not the witness was, in fact, legitimate and truthful,” explained Rohrer. Rohrer continued, “It would determine whether there was truth or error, whether or not it was a false witness or a true witness. That did not happen in D.C. It was not about determining the veracity of the witness. It was about how the witness felt and a whole host of other things.”Rohrer discussed the importance of determining the veracity of accusations and the presumption of innocence lying with the accused.
Rohrer stated:
It was so important, in the maintenance of justice, that God told the leaders of Israel that when a false charge was brought up, they were to move swiftly to identify the veracity of the accuser, and the burden of proof was on the accuser, not the accused. And if it was found that that was a false witness, then the law was to be brought against all of the false witnesses, and they were to be given an equivalent penalty to the degree that which they raised the accusation and hoped that the accused would get some kind of punishment.
Rohrer added, “God calls it an evil. False accusations are an evil that need to be purged. If it is not done, if it is not purged — and the false witnesses and those that co-conspire along with it — are actually given the penalty of law that they wish to heap on someone else, if that does not happen, the justice system completely falls apart.”
Rohrer warned, “Our entire justice system is being threatened and many of our own caretakers — our senators and others — seem to care little about that. That’s a frightening thing.”
Photo by Ben White on Unsplash
American Pastors Network: Kavanaugh Opposition Wants to Kill Process Like They Kill Unborn Babies
/0 Comments/in Release /by News RoomThis week’s Brett Kavanaugh Supreme Court confirmation hearings have been called a “circus,” a “national disgrace” and something straight out of “The Twilight Zone.”
The deeply dramatic hearing and the accusations against Kavanaugh that go with it have deep ties to the pro-life/pro-abortion debate in America, says the American Pastors Network (APN). Many, adds APN President Sam Rohrer, fear—or, in some cases, hope—that Kavanaugh’s appointment to the SCOTUS bench could mean a reversal of the 1973 landmark Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion in America.
“These hearings and the consequences of them could have massive impact on the range of pro-life concerns in our United States,” Rohrer said. “For those who fear God and hold to the sacredness of life, we must understand that the current fight being waged by the opponents of Brett Kavanaugh is far less of an opposition to him as it is their consuming fear of losing the legal right to continuing to murder unborn babies.”
Rohrer added that pro-abortion supporters dread not having access to abortion-on-demand, in some cases, paid for with taxpayer dollars.
“Amid the circus and national disgrace of the Kavanaugh hearings, it’s become obvious that the Kavanaugh opposition seems to salivate over the prospects of killing justice generally and an orderly confirmation process specifically for Supreme Court Justices, as this opposition has defended and rejoiced over the killing of more than 60 million unborn babies in the past 45 years! After all, why not pursue the abortion of justice and the death of the process if you’re devoted to the abortion of millions of defenseless young lives?”
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American Pastors Network Helps Pastors Navigate the Challenge of ‘Preaching in Perilous Times’
/0 Comments/in Release /by News RoomPastors can sometimes feel isolated, being just one among a flock with a specific set of responsibilities and concerns.
The American Pastors Network (APN) aims to alleviate some of these feelings of isolation by offering both in-person and virtual events where pastors can come together, gain insight from each other and share their ideas and experiences.
A recent APN conference call among pastors focused on the topic of “Preaching in Perilous Times,” and APN president Sam Rohrer says these types of gatherings help pastors to know there are others facing their same challenges.
“We were not only honored to host this pastors’ conference call aptly titled ‘Preaching in Perilous Times,’ but we as a pastors network take it seriously to enable pastors to lead their churches in the best way they possibly can, and this means by preaching the whole counsel of God and giving the people in the pews insight into how they can look at today’s issues from both a biblical and constitutional basis,” Rohrer said.
The call highlighted several pastors who are part of the network. Keith Wiebe, APN’s vice president of state chapter development, posed several questions and participants on the call were also able to interact during a time of Q&A. A few of the questions and answers from the call are highlighted below:
QUESTION: George Barna’s research tells us that just 30 percent of pastors actually believe in the absolute authority of Scripture. How has preaching changed over the past few years?
ANSWER: Gary Dull, pastor of Faith Baptist Church, Altoona, Pa.: “God’s concept of preaching has never changed, God’s message to the preacher has never changed, but one of the things that concerns me is that down through the years, a lot of preaching has become what I refer to as a ‘cupcake’ sermon. In other words, preachers will preach that which looks good, sounds good, maybe even tastes good but it has very, very little spiritual nourishment. I’m very concerned about that because I think we need to do as Paul said—to preach good sound doctrine—and some of these ‘cupcake’ sermons today do not do that.”
Q: How has the audience changed? Have their expectations, needs and interests changed?
A: Dull: “The needs will never change from generation to generation because of the spiritual aspect of the individual’s life are all aboard in sin. We all need a Savior, and we all need to grow. I began pastoring in February of 1974, and when I started out, there was a lot of interest in sound doctrine from the pew. People wanted to know what the Bible really said, to understand the doctrine, who God is, what God expects and how God operates. What I have found down through the years is that people in the pew have gotten away from the desire to have sound doctrine preached to them. They’re more interested in having messages that teach them how to do this and how to do that. Those come by way of practical application, but if doctrine is not first of all established in their hearts and minds of people, then living is not going to be right.”
Q: What challenges are faced in training young preachers—shaping their thinking and molding their preaching?
A: Nathan Crockett, professor at Bob Jones University, Greenville, S.C.: “When they come as freshmen, we’re amazed at … their lack of biblical understanding. I tell them to turn to a certain passage and they’re fumbling around, partly because they are used to the cell phone. Before you can preach God’s Word to others, you have to understand it yourself. They may be very familiar with the world in which they live, but they have to understand the world of the Bible and actually have biblical knowledge and understanding to be able to get that information to the audience they’re preaching to.”
Q: Describe the preaching burden God has given you for a multiethnic, multicultural setting.
A: Joe Green, pastor of Antioch Assembly, Harrisburg, Pa.: “Our motto is to promote and protect the image of God. I believe that that’s our calling and the church’s calling as a whole. As we examine the image and the likeness of God, which we are made in, I look at the trinity: God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, which includes unity in the midst of diversity. I’m always careful to mention unity in the midst of diversity and not unity in spite of diversity, because a lot of times when we come together from a multicultural perspective, we want to take the person out of their cultural experience and background and make them more like us.”
Q: Why are messages on a biblical worldview important to address from the pulpit?
A: Mike Frazier, pastor of Canton Baptist Temple, Canton, Ohio: “I think in churches across America, there’s a little bit of a disconnect between what I would call ‘Sunday Christianity’ and then their weekly Christianity. They might affirm a way of believing on Sunday but then often their lives do not reflect that biblical understanding throughout the rest of the week. I felt it very critical to deal with the subject of having a biblical worldview. I dealt with the importance of it and how to cultivate a biblical mindset. We talked about how a biblical worldview all begins in Genesis Chapters 1 and 2 and how a biblical worldview helps you to understand the mess we’re in today all across America and in the world. We also talked about a biblical worldview and how it pertains to salvation. That’s where it all begins and how a is person saved—how really thinking biblically sets us apart from the rest of the world. It was Jesus who said in John 17:17: ‘Sanctify them through thy truth.’ The idea of sanctifying is to set apart, to distinguish. If we can get our people to think biblically, we can get them to live biblically. If I can help you to do that on Sunday and then to get you to live out the truth of God’s word throughout the rest of the week, we can truly be the salt of the earth and the light of the world that He’s called us to be.”
Accusers and Accusations: What Is at Risk in the Kavanaugh Hearings?
/1 Comment/in Blog, Release /by News RoomAs the nation continues to be captivated by the Judge Brett Kavanaugh hearings and the accusations that have come forward, the American Pastors Network is looking at the biblical principles that should be guiding the entire process—especially considering the great impact on the future of the country.
APN president Sam Rohrer discussed the matter on yesterday’s “Stand in the Gap Today” program, the radio ministry of the American Pastors Network.
Rohrer said few are considering the biblical principles that are at the basis of both the legal and moral crux of a confirmation hearing such as this one.
“Contrary to what many may believe, there is a biblical principle that is, in fact, part of our law, and, frankly, this principle is at the core of what the American Pastors Network communicates and what the ‘Stand in the Gap’ programming aims to share. The very basis of our justice system—our law—comes right off the pages of Old Testament Scripture. The Book of Deuteronomy speaks exactly to what every legislator, every Congressman, every Senator and every lawyer should be thinking about right now—that every lawmaker who gives credence to unproven accusations are indicting themselves because they are participating in very bad justice and very bad law.”
Rohrer shared Deuteronomy 19:15-19 (ESV): “A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established. If a malicious witness arises to accuse a person of wrongdoing, then both parties to the dispute shall appear before the LORD, before the priests and the judges who are in office in those days. The judges shall inquire diligently, and if the witness is a false witness and has accused his brother falsely, then you shall do to him as he had meant to do to his brother. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.”
“False accusations, false witnesses and false testimony, God says, are evil, and unless purged, brought into the light and the false accuser identified and punished swiftly and appropriately, the entire justice system is brought down,” Rohrer said. “And when The Washington Post or a Diane Feinstein sits on an accusation by one person alone, from a long time ago, it makes it even worse. Worse yet, our lawmakers and leaders do not recognize that one witness could be a false fitness; when play along with it, they are part of the dismantling of our justice system, and they would be as a part of what this verse says: ‘They are a part of an evil that must be purged.’
“This is a serious matter because our entire justice system hangs upon it,” Rohrer added. “It’s been attempted before, but now, I’m afraid, it’s being attempted with abandon. It’s dreadfully perilous for our system of justice. Senators who are clamoring for a single witness to be heard without demanding other witnesses come forward as well are violating important processes that already exist within the law. We’re in dangerous times when such things are even allowed to occur.”
Listen to an audio clip of this important discussion on “Stand in the Gap Today” here.
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